Pigeonhole Carrie Rodriguez at your peril. Sure, she’s done a lot of duets. She plays a fiddle (a mean one at that.) She’s recorded songs with a pleasing, folksy twang. But don’t think you know what you’re getting.

Not yet 30, and with a critically-acclaimed solo record and several well-received duet records in her wake, the classically trained singer/songwriter has just begun flexing her artistic muscles, still figuring out how far her talents will take her. If you’re looking for someone playing it safe and sticking to tried-and-true ways of music making, as the title of Rodriguez’s daring new album aptly states, SHE AIN’T ME.

“Because I took some chances, wrote with some new people and actually co-wrote most of the songs on the album, it’s very different,” Rodriguez notes.

Also different: Malcolm Burn’s dense production, bulging with thoughtful details, yet always serving the song. “If the song doesn’t hold up on its own, without all the production, he doesn’t want to have anything to do with it,” Rodriguez says. “And he was much more into the vibe than perfection—which is good for me, because my tendency is to try to make things perfect.”

The songs on SHE AIN’T ME, Rodriguez’s second solo outing for Manhattan/Back Porch, come from an introspective place, rife with self-assessment and questioning. “It comes from having to really look within yourself when you’re forced to be alone, and to not be afraid of that process,” Rodriguez says. “Taking some time off from the road this year to write allowed me to do some growing and reflecting that I often put aside when I’m touring all the time.”

So, if you would like to win one of these new CDs then just answer this easy question: Rodriguez found no shortage of resources for transforming “violin” into “fiddle" when she transferred to which College to become a better performer?!

Send us your answers and if you're correct you'll be in the running to win one of these new CDs! Just send us an e:mail here before September 1st with your answer and the subject title CONTEST: CARRIE RODRIGUEZ CDs to: exclusivemagazine@flash.net

Streaming Audio Link for “She Ain't Me”

Streaming Audio Link for “El Dorado”

www.carrierodriguez.com